Politicians of all persuasions on yatras or planning roadmaps for one in order to reach out directly to voters.
Published: 22nd July 2012 12:25 PM | Last Updated: 22nd July 2012 12:25 PM
The bowlers were trying hard to get him out. But he was hitting every ball to the boundary. Though, it was neither a T-20 nor one-day match, people were eagerly watching it. The reason for their curiosity was, the batsman was none other than the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, N Kiran Kumar Reddy.
Kiran Reddy, a former first class cricketer, was playing cricket with young cricketers at AP Residential College in East Godavari district, during the first leg of his novel mass-contact programme, Indiramma Bata (Indiramma’s Path). He is a photographer’s delight when he is playing cricket.
After the Congress Party’s humiliating defeat in the just concluded bypolls in the state, Kiran Reddy formulated this Indiramma Bata, to tour various districts in the state to set the things right in the government and win over the hearts of alienated sections of voters by finding out the flaws in the delivery mechanism of welfare schemes, thereby to counter the propaganda of his detractors in the party that the Chief Minister was not efficient.
Under Indiramma Baata, the chief minister tours districts for three days a week. On the first day, he inspects Primary Health Centres (PHC), works being done under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and housing colonies. He also inspects SC, ST hostels and residential schools. He dines with hostel students and sleeps in the hostel for the night. On the second day, he inspects nearby irrigation projects, being constructed under Jalayagnam, and interacts with farmers in their fields. He does have community lunch and dinner at SC and ST colonies. On the third day, Kiran Reddy reviews all the flagship programmes with officials. Later, he interacts with his party workers so as to know the party position in that district.
“Indiramma Bata is to take the welfare schemes to the doorsteps of people. The programme is meant to learn problems of the people, performance of the officials,” said Chief Minister Kiran Reddy. He said he was hopeful of completing Indiramma Bata in at least 100 Assembly segments in one month.
Despite doubts being raised on the possibility of the chief minister facing public ire over power crisis, seeds and drinking water issues, Kiran Reddy successfully completed his first leg of Indiramma Bata last week in East Godavari district, particularly in Maoist-affected agency areas.
During his maiden tour, Kiran Reddy took up surprise checks at PHCs and fair price shops.
Meanwhile, like Kiran Reddy, the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief, Botcha Satyanarayana, is also planning a statewide tour on his own to instill confidence in the Congress cadre whose morale has dipped after the drubbing in the byelections. However, the PCC chief will confine his programmes only to the party cadre. He is no cricketer and therefore the lensemen do not like him.
“Every leader in the party should reach the people and trumpet the ongoing welfare schemes. It is high time we toured the villages so as to know the sufferings of the common man. Had we undertaken such tours much earlier, we would have achieved better results in the bypolls,” Botcha said and made it clear that he would be joining the programmes of the chief minister during Indiramma Bata wherever necessary.
Rajya Sabha member and one time matinee idol K Chiranjeevi is also planning to tour the state extensively from August to know the plight of the common man first hand. The actor-turned-politician will visit agricultural fields and interact with farmers like Kiran Reddy to know their problems. He will also meet various sections of people in villages and elicit their opinions on welfare schemes so as to rectify the flaws in the implementation of those schemes. Though he is in politics, he has the celluloid hang over all over him. As he is a rage among the youth even now, he is sure to attract huge crowds.
“We need to create much awareness among people over the government’s welfare schemes and corrupt practices of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy,” Chiranjeevi said.
Anyway, the three top leaders in the state Congress, Kiran Reddy, Botcha and Chiranjeevi have decided to revive the fortunes of the Congress, which received humiliating drubbing in the hands of fledgling YSR Congress in the bypolls, in the state by extensively touring the state.
On the other hand, YSR Congress chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s Odarpu Yatra stopped when the CBI arrested him in May and sent him to jail. Jagan’s mother and YSRC honorary president, Vijayamma, who is holding the fort, now is all set to reach the masses by taking up Yatras and agitation programmes to derive political mileage from the failures of the government. Vijayamma staged sit in at Vijayawada a day ago to highlight the power crisis in the state. The YSRC honorary president will take up a day-long dharna at Siricilla, constituency represented by K T Rama Rao, son of TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao, to sympathise with sufferings of weavers on July 23. “This is an apolitical dharna. Let everyone support us,” Vijayamma said.
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